To Not Die Today - National Suicide Prevention Week

When Academy Award winner and popular comedian Robin Williams took his life in 2014, the world was devastated. It wasn’t just the revelation of his lifelong struggle with manic depression that shook everyone up; it was how close and how real his demise made suicide feel.

Desi Heartthrobs Guru Dutt of Choudhuveen Ka Chand and the beautiful Divya Bharathi have brought many a fan to bitter tears with their acts of self destruction.

This past July, Chester Bennington, the lead singer for Linkin Park, killed himself via hanging at the age of 41. These deaths of the world’s beloved people sure brought back memories for many people, of suicides committed by sons and daughters, fathers and mothers, and of friends and neighbours, complete with all the sadness, guilt and anguish that such memories come with.

September 11-16 is National Suicide Prevention Week in Canada.

Will you help spread awareness?

The situation is more widespread today than ever, with more suicides being recorded among teens, adults and older people across the country. And, according to statistics, it’s only worsening. Over 44,000 deaths occur as a result of suicide in North America alone every year, according to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. Even the US Department of Health and Human Services website shows that suicide remains among the top 10 causes of death in America.

Can it be stopped? Is there a faster way to combat suicide?

We can never know. But we can make a significant change if we all put our hands together.

This week, starting Sept 11th, is National Suicide Prevention Week in Canada. It’s the perfect time to reflect on suicide and its effects on our society. Even more, it’s the right time to gauge how much we’ve done to help with the fight against it. The question is, are you playing your part in preventing more suicides?

For many people, suicide is a confusing, out of bounds topic. There is no smart way to approach it, or identify someone that is suicidal. Most people actually think suicidal people do not need help. Others believe suicidal people to be way past help. Neither belief is true.

Maybe you’re thinking, ‘how am I supposed to help someone I don’t know to be suicidal? How do I even know they are?’ And you are right. In many cases, people commit suicide without showing any signs. It all happens so fast, leaving their immediate family and friends wondering what went wrong.

When news of Robin Williams’ death hit the news, people wondered why someone as rich and as well placed in life as the actor could choose to cut his life short. This happens to many families across the country, resulting in years of grief and guilt.

But there’s a way you can help. This week ending September 16th, play your part and save a life.

Here a few tips you can use.

Learn more about suicide and its causes. There’s more than one cause of suicide, but research shows that 90% of all people that commit suicide suffer from one or more mental disorders such as depression, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Other may be feelings of helplessness, rejection, fear or loss. Try to learn more about suicide to understand how to approach the subject better.

Look out for signs of depression. Being the number one trigger for suicides, depression is definitely the condition to watch. The most common sign is loss of interest in usual pleasure activities, but there are lots of others too. The easiest way to nip a suicide in its bud by identifying a depressed person and helping them.

Reach out to suicidal people and show that you care. Many suicidal people have been found to feel lonely, rejected, unattended to and generally sad. Despite the misconception that such people do not need our help, they actually do. Reach out to a suicidal person you know and talk to them about how they feel.

The LifeLine Canada Foundation (TLC) is a registered non-profit committed to positive mental health and suicide prevention in Canada and Worldwide. The LifeLine Canada website is both a platform for information about the Foundation’s initiatives as well as a one stop portal, through which an extensive amount of information, education, resources, guides and tools are right at one’s fingertips.

Get the Lifeline App. The LifeLine App is the National free Suicide Prevention and Awareness App that offers access and guidance to support for those suffering in crisis and those who have suffered the devastating loss of a loved one from suicide. The LifeLine App also provides awareness education and prevention strategies to guide people in crisis all across the Globe.

Do anything to help. The world will thank you.

Let’s make this year’s National Suicide Prevention Week the most productive ever.